


Under the Scorching Sun

by carelessredneck



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Dehydration, Minor Violence, Religion, Starvation, Vomiting, maybe a felix and wash pairing, slight abuse, yay horses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-03
Updated: 2015-10-24
Packaged: 2018-04-24 16:04:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4926088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carelessredneck/pseuds/carelessredneck
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>David Washington is on his own, left for dead in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. But after meeting a couple of ragtag young-adults fighting to survive like everyone else, he realizes that they may be his best chance for survival.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Burned

**Author's Note:**

> First Fic! Please leave pointers and enjoy!

His feet drug in the pale dirt, leaving lanes in their wake. His shoes were untied, dirty...in need of a thorough washing. His baggy jeans were rolled up from the ankle, exposing six inches of scabbed, hairy shins. His bare back was burning, being scorched by the power of the sun high above him. He had slung his shirt over his shoulder, the only protection from a severe sunburn, insisting that it was much too warm to travel with it on. His blonde head was covered by an old baseball cap, a cap from the 1996 world series, the year the New York Yankees beat the Atlanta Braves. It was his father's old cap, re-gifted to him on his 13th birthday. He looked up into the sky, closing his eyes. He exposed his neck to the air, desperately waiting for a breeze to come through and dry the beads of sweat dripping down his face, for a breeze to cool down his overheated body. Nothing came. 

David Washington collapsed to his knees, breath wavering, muscles shaking. He lurched forward, making an attempt to vomit. He heaved once, twice, three times, nothing coming out, not earning anything but more pain in his gut and a more desperate need for food and water. He slowly moved his head upwards, sweat trickling off his eyebrows and into his blue eyes. He examined his surroundings, seeing nothing but short trees, small bushes, and the heat waves emitting off the dirt on the not so distant horizon. His stomach growled at him and his head pounded furiously, everything in his body desperate for vital nutrients. He tried to push himself up with his weak arms in a last-ditch effort to remove himself from the spot that could soon be labeled as his tomb. His arms, much too weak, gave out under his weight, shaking as his chest slammed down hard against the ground. The dry dirt and small pointed rocks left stinging, microscopic cuts in the skin on his chest and stomach. 

He flipped himself over onto his back with extreme effort, exerting all of his remaining energy. The dirt was hot against his back, stinging him as he gazed half-lidded up into the cloudless sky. He felt around his neck for his small silver cross, now resting on his Adam's apple. He forcefully yanked it off, breaking the chain. The hand now containing his broken necklace fell to his side, landing palm up in the dirt. He slowly twirled his fingers around the chain and around his precious metal object, humming the only church verse that he could remember at the moment. The sun beat down on his face, his breathing uneven, his heart rate slowing, his headache evolving into a dull ache all over the body. 

He heard a sound in the distance, the sound of multiple feet making their way through the dirt and brush. David didn't bother looking up, didn't bother to see who had found him, because he already knew that a zombie or two had smelled his dying breath and had come to welcome David into his sweet demise. But nonetheless his breath quickened, and he had stopped humming. Even though he knew he was facing the inevitable, he still prepared himself for pain of infected teeth sinking into his burned skin. 

A dark figure entered David's sight, blocking the sun, cooling down his body. The figure was very back lit, so any features that could be seen were suddenly nonexistent, sending David into a flurry of fear. His breathing became ragged as the figure slowly bent down and touched his neck. Cold fingers felt at his pulse, causing him to shiver under the hand of the mysterious figure. Without warning, he David felt himself being scooped up from the ground from underneath his arms by a separate person, his back pressed up against leather clothing. His head then sagged loosely, going limp as he lost consciousness to the hands of the unknown people.


	2. Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> David Washington wakes up in an unfamiliar environment.

"...David..." a soft voice whispered from above his head, situated on a large pillow. Soft hair tickled the tip of his nose, causing his nose to twitch gently, earning a laugh from the voice above. "David, honey, it's time for breakfast." David slowly opened his eyes, greeted by stinging white sunlight through his large bedroom window. He smelled his mother's light perfume, a welcoming scent that had not been experienced for a while. 

"No mom," he groaned, flipping himself over onto his stomach. "It's Saturday...I can sleep in." his mother leaned over him even more, her hair now gently touching the back of his neck. 

"Yes, you're right, it is Saturday. But, that also means that it's your 18th birthday! We agreed that the whole family would go out for breakfast, remember?" his mother gently prodded at his back as if she was trying to flip him over, but with zero effort applied.

"Yes, yes, I know, five more minutes," he grumbled into the pillow, regretting the agreement he had made with his family a week earlier. He knew they were going out to get breakfast, but he didn't know that they'd be heading out at the ass crack 'o dawn. 

"David...oh my god...David! Wake up!" his mother said with a sudden urgency in her voice. "Washy, baby, get up now!" she began to shake at his shoulders, rubbing his nose uncomfortably on his pillow. 

"Whaa..?" David questioned, face still in his pillow.

"GET UP!" a load, deep voice bellowed into his ear. David immediately sat up straight, the rotting cot underneath him creaking at the sudden shift in weight. A dark skinned man with brown eyes and shoulder length brown hair was sitting in a rickety chair a few feet to the side. David quickly looked around, examining just where he was. 

The hut was small, dark, and looked to be made of plywood and sheet metal in the dim lighting of the few candles scattered about the space. There was a small metal door directly in front of him, no windows to be found. But the stench, that awful, eye watering stench was definitely the first thing that David noticed. He stifled a gag out of common courtesy, but he truly wanted to vomit. His head was pounding, felt as if his brain was going to burst out of his ears. The stench made the pain even worse.

"W-who are you?" David stammered, cautiously turning his head to eye the man to his side. The man snorted, shifting slightly in his seat. 

"Who are you?" the man parroted back, squinting his eyes intently. David took that as a challenge, turning his body on the cot to fully face the man.

"I believe I asked first." he said, turning up his nose ever so slightly.

"And I believe that you're my prisoner," the man responded in a low voice, his intent gaze unwavering. "So tell me...who are you?" he questioned again. David slunk back down at the word prisoner, a sinking feeling in his gut. He remembered watching those criminal shows on his 72'' flat screen, what to do if you were ever kidnapped. But he specifically remembered that if your kidnapper didn't blindfold you...they had little to no intention of letting you go. With that thought, David slowly gulped, his heart rate rising.

"My name...is David Washington," he said slowly, his stomach doing somersaults. "Now, who are you?"

"I am Locus." the man said, shifting his position to lean forward in the chair, removing a good amount of space between David's eye and his own. 

"Locus...?" David asked, his voice rising with fear of the unknown.

"Locus is all you need to know." the man grumbled, not moving from his leaned over position. 

"Why did you wake me up?" David asked, examining the man's strong jawline and the scar across his cheek. 

"You were making a lot of noise in your sleep," Locus answered, leaning back in his chair in a nonchalant manner. "It was very annoying."

"That's a shitty reason reason," David responded, huffing a breath of air out of his mouth. "I was having a good dream."

"I guess so," Locus mumbled, moving his arms out to his sides in a stretch. "Those are pretty hard to come by these days." The single door to the hut suddenly flung open, letting the light from the sunrise flow in. A small man, much smaller than David, made his way in, carrying an armful of firewood. He then kicked the door closed behind him, dropping all the wood to the floor with and ear-shattering clang.

"Well, rise and shine, Buttercup!" the man said with a sarcastic smile on his face.

"Felix, don't be such and idiot!" Locus jumped out of the chair and began to pick up the firewood, placing it into a small pile leaning on the wall near him. "You're going to get us killed!" the man, Felix, snapped his head down to glare at Locus.

"Honestly, that's the least of my worries right now," he snapped, quickly turning his head to look at David. "YOU are my problem!"

"Whaaa..?" David questioned, growing wary of the change of tone in Felix's voice.

"You! You got one of our horses killed! Now we only have two! Do you know how hard it is to lug around the entire remainder of your life on the back of only TWO horses?"

"I...um...what did I d-do?" David stammered. Felix took another step forward, pointing a finger at him.

"You were out wandering in the DESERT in the middle of a ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE, no food or water, the dumbest thing to do! You nearly got yourself killed! But, no surprise, Locus couldn't leave little blondie locks after we saw you collapse a half mile in front of us. When we stopped to get you, a fucking zombie swooped us from behind and sunk their nasty teeth into our strongest horse! It's your fault!" 

"Sorry, sorry..." David said, scooting his way back on the cot. "But, why horses?" 

"They're eco-friendly." Felix said, crossing his arms in front of him.

"They make less noise and don't require gas," Locus added on as he began to stand up from his kneeling position. "And they're decent company...nice to have a living thing that doesn't constantly talk." Felix shot him a warning glance before switching his eyes back to a terrified David.

"What's your name, prisoner?" Felix questioned.

"His name is David Washington," Locus responded. "And he's not really prisoner."

"I'm not?"

"He's not?"

"No," Locus grumbled as he rummaged through a large camping bag, his heart set on finding...something. "He's not. He's more of a captive."

"What does that even mean?" Felix snarled, giving his friend an aggressive look. 

"It means he is captured by us because we don't know if we can trust him."

"Then why did we capture him in the first place?"

"Because he can be of use to us if he proves himself trustworthy...Jesus, Felix, you're really bad at this whole 'negotiation' thing, aren't you?" Locus chuckled as he stood up, pulling out something from the bag, the one thing he had been looking for. A small pistol, along with an extra magazine of ammunition. David immediately felt his heart skip a beat, letting a large, auditory gulp slide down his throat. He then reached at his neck, grabbing for his cross, only to come to the realization that he had taken it off as he was dying in the dirt...or when he believed he was going to die in the dirt.

"Should've killed him," Felix said under his breath as he took his place in the seat Locus had previously been sitting in. 

"I'm going hunting," Locus said as he put some supplies into a small bag that was slung over his shoulder. He then made his way over to the small door and opened it, letting in a good amount of fresh air. "And Felix? Try not to kill the kid." With that, Locus closed the door, leaving David and Felix alone in a room that suddenly began to feel much smaller than it had before.


	3. It's whatever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> David gets to know one of his new...acquaintances, and then helps to get them out of a dire situation.

Felix eyed David, slowly moving his gaze up and down his sitting body once, twice, three times before moving his brown eyed gaze to stare into the blue eyes of David.

"Like what you see?" David asked with an edge in his voice, determined to let Felix know that he wasn't a coward. Felix didn't answer immediately, but let out a small chuckle, running a hand through his brown hair.

"Well, let's just say that it's better than a lot of things that I've seen in the past few weeks." he responded. David nodded, squinting his eyes at the smaller man.

"So, where's my cross?" 

"Your what?"

"My cross," David repeated, his teeth gritting. "It's silver, on a chain, hard to miss. Where is it?" 

"Sorry pal, I don't know what you're talking about." Felix responded lightly, a smile forming on his lips.

"Yes you do!" David nearly shouted, feeling his heart rate rise in anger.

"No, I fucking don't!"

"Then why are you laughing?"

"Because," Felix responded slowly. "I think it's stupid that somebody can still believe in God and Jesus, or whatever you people believe in." David was taken aback by his response, and he felt his anger subside slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"The world has gone to shit. Almost every person had died...good people. Innocent people.Killed by...what? A virus? A disease? If there's really a supreme ruler of all life, then why would somebody so 'amazing' send the world to shit, eh?" Felix said, his face blossoming an obvious flush. 

"Well..." David began. "I don't know. I guess he has a plan for us." Felix snorted, but the flush of his emotions still remained.

"Well, some fucking plan!" he threw his hands up in frustration, then let his hands come to massage his temples, as if he had some sort of headache. "But look kid, I don't know where your cross is, okay? If I did I would've given it to you. Honestly, I would've." David sat in silence before Felix broke the silence once more. "You were one of those kids, weren't you?" he questioned.

"What?"

"You were the perfect kid, straight As, popular, athletic and living for Jesus, right?" David nodded slowly, unsure of whether he should be responding or not to the question that was aimed to be an insult. "Right..."

"What was the point of asking me that?"

"Just confirming what I thought was true." Felix grumbled, slowly standing up. "Hungry?"

"Yeah," David said as he felt the light hunger in his stomach grow into a more intense feeling, into a feeling of pain. "Yeah, I'm really hungry." Felix nodded, rummaging through a small backpack. After a few moments of concentrated searching, he pulled out a small bag of granola and tossed it into David's lap.

"Here you go, kid." he said, settling himself back down into the small folding chair. 

"Why do you call me that?" David asked, eyeing the suspicious looking bag of granola sitting in his lap.

"Call you what?"

"Kid."

"Because I'm older than you." Felix replied, shrugging his shoulders loosely.

"You don't know that for sure." David responded, slowly opening the small ziploc bag.

"Yes I do," Felix said, sitting straight up in his chair, a small smile forming across his face. "David Washington, the only freshman to make it on the Chorus High Varsity soccer team." David dropped the bag back into his lap, a few pieces of granola falling out and landing on the cot.

"How did you know that?" he said, feeling his heart beat faster. Felix snorted, a single 'ha' escaping his mouth.

"I fucking went to school with you, dude! I'm two years older than you!" Felix chuckled a bit, settling back down into a resting position.

"I never saw you."

"Duh, I never came to school. School is for dweebs," Felix laughed. "I liked getting smoked out more than sitting in a classroom where you learned pointless shit."

"Um...sorry I never noticed you, I guess."

"Ah, it's whatever," Felix shrugged. "I guess it's in a popular kids nature to ignore people like me." David suddenly felt anger swell up inside of him.

"Hey, if you don't like me did why don't you just kill me?" he questioned, throwing the open bag of granola at Felix, causing most of it to spill out over Felix and all over the floor.

"Watch it, dipshit!" Felix jumped out of his chair, grabbing David by his collar, pulling him up inches away from his face. "I haven't killed you," Felix spat through gritted teeth. "Because Locus doesn't want me to kill you, Washington!" he tossed David back onto the cot, it bouncing beneath his weight. David growled back up at him, swiftly stepping off the cot and towering over Felix, looking into his eyes with a predatory glimmer.

"What are you, his bitch?" he sneered, just as the single door to the hut flew open. Locus stumbled in, throwing a seemingly empty gun to the floor with a clang.

"Felix," he groaned, collapsing onto his knees, headed face first into the ground. Felix immediately scurried out from beneath David's shadow to catch Locus' torso before his face came in contact with the hard ground. 

"Hey, hey," Felix said frantically, getting down on two knees to look Locus in the face. "What's wrong? What happened?" he asked frantically, brushing the long hair out of his face to look him in the eye.

"Shot..." he groaned, eyes pinching shut in pain as Felix felt at a dark stain in the shirt on Locus' stomach. "Person...followed...leave...now!" he immediately jumped up out of Felix's grasp, only to go tumbling backwards, but was luckily saved by Felix again as he grabbed his shoulders and pulled him down. 

"Shit!" Felix hissed. He turned to face David. "Washington! Grab the two bags!" David jumped up, running towards the three backpacks lined up against the wall.

"Um, Felix, which bags?" he said frantically as he stared at the bags.

"The red one and the black one!" Felix shouted as he threw both of Locus' arms over his shoulders from behind him, holding the two hands in front his his neck. David grabbed the bright red one, only to be faced by two remaining black bags.

"You've got to be joking," he grumbled. "Which black one? North face or-"

"THE NORTH FACE!" Felix shouted as he kicked the door open and stumbled out, Locus basically getting a piggy back ride as his feet drug in the ground behind Felix. "Move it Washington!" he called behind him. David quickly picked up the bags and threw one over each shoulder, each bag causing his shoulders to sag under their weight. Felix shuffled quickly around the back side of the hut, rain pouring down around them and trees towering over their heads.

Rain? Trees? David thought to himself. How are there rain and trees? They saved me from the middle of the dessert. How far did they travel?...how long was I out? 

As they rounded the rear of the hut, David and Felix were greeted by two horses, one brown and black. Much to their luck, they were already saddled up, reins and everything. 

"Get on Jack," Felix said, tilting his head in the direction of the black horse. David quickly made his way over to the horse, swiftly tying a bag to both sides of the horse using the ropes that hung off the saddle. David then looked over to Felix, who was having obvious trouble getting Locus onto the other horse. David helped him; directing Felix to get on and then virtually tossing Locus up onto the horse to meet Felix's hands. David then quickly made his way back to his horse after untying Felix's. He untied his then quickly hopped on, immediately going into autopilot from the horse back lessons his mother had paid for when he was a kid. He grabbed the reins, feeling the slickness of the red liquid upon them that undoubtedly belonged to Locus. He whipped the reins around to face Felix, the horse's body immediately following.

"Where?" he panted to Felix. Felix was holding Locus' body in front up him while he grasped the reins, Locus' head bobbing lifelessly with each movement.

"There," Felix directed with the tilt of his head to a barely visible trail going up a wet and tree covered hill behind the hut. "You go first, I'll slow you down. Go straight until we're safe." David quickly turned Jack to the trail and gave him a hard kick, the horse at full speed in seconds.

He flew up the hill, the rain hitting his face hard as Jack plowed through the bushes and the trees. Jack slipped a couple times, only to regain himself and continue onward. Once they reached the flat top, David stopped the horse to look back, seeing Felix and Locus trailing not far behind while coming up the hill. He turned back around and booked it, small branches hitting his face, leaving small cuts. The wind bit his face, while the sleeting rain added to bite. He could hear the movement behind him, knowing Felix was still with him. All he could think about was being safe, safe, safe...the word rang through his head, keeping him going, keeping his feet kicking at the sides of a fatigued animal. He continued flying through the brush for God knows how long. He continued until he couldn't hear the hooves of the horse behind him anymore, continued until the rain began to settle, continued until the sun began to peek through the clouds. Bushes began to slow Jack down, causing David's heart rate to rise.

"C'mon!" he shouted, looking down at the horse, slapping it hard on the neck. "Can't you go-" WHAM! David's face came into hard contact with a branch, sending him flying backwards off the horse, landing flat on his back, the air knocked out of him. David let out a long wheeze, feeling the tears of fear streaming down his cheek.

"Please," he pleaded into the sky as he struggled to get air into his lungs. "Don't end me like this." The wetness from the ground began to soak through his thin shirt, touching his skin. David closes his eyes and began to take deep breaths, the temperature of the moist ground causing him to shiver. His chest rose and fell softly, quietly, as he prayed to remain alive. He remembered the feeling of safety, how he had taken it for granted. The taste of green beans, how he hated them, but how that was suddenly the only thing he wanted in that moment. As time went by, he began to breath easier, and he sat up. His head spun, and he could still feel the exact spot where the branch made contact. Jack was nowhere to be found.

"Fuck," David muttered, buying his aching face into his hands. "Fuck." he suddenly heard a noise behind him, causing him to whip around and jump up onto his feet. Much to his relief, it was only Felix and Locus on their horse, accompanied by Jack at their side. 

"Looking for this?" Felix questioned, sending Jack over to David. David let out a long sigh of relief, caressing the horses head in his hands as he looked up and Felix. 

"Thanks," he sighed, gently running his fingers up and down the horses face. "So, where to?"

"There," Felix said, pointing to an opening in an immense cliff face not fifty yards from them. David turned on his heel and started forward, Jack trailing behind. When they reached the opening, David tied Jack and the other horse up to a nearby tree, making sure their knots were tight. He then helped Locus off, gently setting him to the moist floor of the forest. 

"Is he okay?" he questioned as Felix slide off the creature.

"Not for long," Felix sighed, patting his horse on the butt. "Let's get him inside and get him taken care of...you too." David felt at the bump on his forehead, and as he removed his fingers, he saw the blood covering his fingers. He sighed, then turned his body to help lift a surprisingly heavy Locus. They carried him into the cave, slowly but surely. They rested him onto the cold floor over the cave. The cave wasn't very big and the ceilings weren't very high, but it was enough room for three people to comfortably fit. David then went back outside and quickly untied the back packs, bringing them back into the cavern. He dropped them on the floor next to Felix, who was now leaning over a groaning Locus.

Felix pulled Locus' shirt over his head, revealing a ripped body with a large, bloody hole in the middle of it. David instantaneously felt vomit make his way up to his throat, but he was able to push it back down. As Felix opened the red bag and began to take out what appeared to medical supplies, David spoke up.

"I...think I'm gonna wait outside." he said. Felix nodded, not removing his eyes from Locus' wound. David turned quickly, making his way outside the cave. He found a spot just outside the entrance to sit and lean up against, the cold rock sending waves of relaxation through David's tense body. Within moments of settling down, he heard the muffled cries of Locus as Felix went to work. Thank God Felix had put something in his mouth to shut him up. David surrounded his head with his legs, pressing his knees up against his ears to muffle the already muffled cries. He sat there in the same position for hours, up until Locus stopped making noise and Felix hand finished his handy work. David finally lifted his head, seeing that the sun had set behind the trees, giving the sky a pink coloring. He slowly stood up and then cautiously made his way into the now silent cave. 

He saw Locus lying on his back in the same position he was in when David left, his eyes staring blankly up and the ceiling. But there was now a blanket beneath him, pulled out from one of the bags David had grabbed. Felix was leaning over Locus, running his hands through his hair. He looked up when David walked him, and then ushered him over. David walked over, kneeling down as Felix pulled out a med kit. From the med kit, he pulled out a small white cloth and a bandage.

"Look at me," Felix said, turning David's face in his hands. "Not that bad." he dabbed the cloth against David's head, causing David to hiss in pain. Felix chuckled lightly and he pressed the bandage against his forehead. "You need to sleep, Washington," he said as he pulled a blanket out from the black bag and pressed it into David's chest. "Sleep." he now directed at David, pushing David gently to the ground. David looked at the gaping opening of the cave, fear running through him.

"Zombies," he said, still looking at the opening.

"It's desolate out here, we won't see any for a while." Felix said quietly as he packed up the supplies into the bags.

David slowly closed his eyes, doing his best to welcome sleep like an old friend...but it didn't come. David lied awake for what felt like hours, reliving the events that just happened in the past few hours over and over again, analyzing them for no apparent reason. It was silent in the cave except for the light breathing of all three people. 

"Felix," the low hum of Locus' voice suddenly said, almost causing David to jump. There was a moment of silence before there was a feeble response.

"Yep?" Locus then sighed, and David slowly opened his eyes just enough to see Locus lying down in front of him with Felix on the opposite side of him, their figures barely visible in the darkness. "Locus, what do ya want?"

"Nothing," Locus said, his chest rising in falling in a fluid motion.

"Then why did you wake me up, asshole?" Felix snapped, sitting up straight, his facial features not visible in the darkness.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay," he said, turning his head to look up and him. "And you weren't asleep anyway."

"Oh," Felix said, his voice trailing off. "Yeah...yeah I'm okay, don't worry about me, worry about yourself, you're the one who's injured."

"You know I always worry about you, Felix."

"Yeah. I know."

"Then don't act so surprised when I care." he said softly, just as rain began to fall lightly outside. 

"I'm not 'surprised'," Felix said, irritation in his voice. "I just don't understand why you care about me in the first place." 

"You're my best friend, Felix," Locus said, letting a sigh come through his lips. "You know that." he slowly raised a hand up to Felix's face, cupping his cheek gently within his palm. 

"Yeah," Felix sighed, reaching both of his hands up to his face to press Locus' hand further into him. "Yeah, you're my best friend too."

"We only have each other," Locus said as he pulled his hand away from his face.

"And Wash!" Felix chimed, much to David's surprise.

"Who?" Locus asked.

"David. Wash. Boy. Blonde...cute." At the end of the sentence, David felt his heart race rise, and felt the blush spread across his face.

"Oh," Locus said. "I see. So I guess you've taken quite a liking to him?"

"Yeah," Felix said, lying himself back down onto the ground. "He's chill." And with that, no more words were spoken in the cave. But David pondered all of what Felix had said with a sleepy mind, trying to make sense of it, but he couldn't. But one thing was for sure.

He didn't mind his new nickname.


	4. Squad Goals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> David decides to join his new group of friends on their wild journey to a safe haven.

David sat on the living room couch with his family, watching the news in crystal clear surround sound. His mother to his left, his father to his right, and his little sister who had nestled herself in between David's legs, sitting cross legged on the floor.

"There have been two million documented cases of this new viral sickness," the news anchor reported, videos of carnage being displayed behind his head. "All accounts ranging from London, Beijing, Sydney, to the southwest United States. The symptoms of this disease include but are not limited to: protruding veins on the neck or arms, protruding eyes, loss of teeth, loss of skin, loss of hair, sudden bleeding from any place on the body, extreme aggression towards people, and loss of the ability to communicate by any means. Government and health officials advise that you and your loved ones avoid travel for the time being, until this sickness blows over. If you believe that someone you know may have contracted this disease, please-" the news anchor's voice was cut off and his image disappeared, David's dad tossing the remote beside him on the couch.

"Well, I've had about enough of this nonsense!" he grumbled as his pushed himself off of the couch. David scowled at his dad, angry at him for turning the TV off.

"Hey, I was watching that!" David growled, jumping up to confront his dad, his sister squealing to get out of the way.

"It's all nonsense! Propaganda!" his dad scolded, waggling a finger in front of his face. "Those poor, dirty countries are just trying to gain our attention, trying to get America to use its hard earned money to help them with their own problems!"

"But Dad, it's not just the third world countries, it's everywhere!" David protested. "And you heard the guy! We simply can't go to Phoenix!" David said as he picked up his bag and turned towards the stairs. He suddenly felt himself being yanked back by his collar, and he landed hard on his back.

"Don't you dare disobey me!" his father shouted at him. He heard his eight year old sister, Quinn, scream as she jumped up onto the couch. David quickly got back up, bringing his bag up with him. His dad quickly grabbed his collar, and brought David's face inches away from his own. "We are going to Phoenix. We are leaving now. You are coming with us. And we will have a nice family reunion." he then roughly released David, tossing him back onto the ground.

"Yeah," David said under his breath as he got back up and headed towards the front door, bag draped over his shoulder. "Let's see how well that'll work out."

 

David awoke with a start, sitting straight up within seconds of consciousness. He immediately felt the dull ache in his back, the cold cave floor not providing the best place to sleep comfortably. He hissed and gently prodded at his back, feeling for the epicenter of the pain. Without luck, he gently dropped his hand and looked around the cave. By the appearance, it was still early. He could see the slight pink of the sun on the horizon through the mouth of the cave, gently sitting at the tops of the trees. He could hear birds singing sweet songs, water droplets hitting the floor of the cave, the occasional snort from one of the horses outside the entrance. It was cold. Very cold, actually. He shivered, wondering how he was going to survive in this new way of life. He then noticed that Locus was gone...his spot was empty, but the imprint from his body was still in the blanket. David laid a hand over it. Still warm. He must have left recently. David suddenly jumped at the feeling of something furry brushing the back of his arm. He whipped himself around,only to be greeted by Felix, still sound asleep.

David looked at Felix, his partially shaved head ruffled, his nose pressed into the ground. The gentle rise and fall of his back, the only thing showing that he was still alive. Felix looked smaller when he slept, and his face looked different. He looked...relaxed. He looked as if he wasn't ready to spit and insult and any second, wasn't ready to chop of a zombie's head in one swing. He looked, calm, collected, kind...and dare he say...innocent, to an extent. The sudden scuttle of rocks from behind David sent him whirling around, only to see Locus standing in the entrance, completely soaked from head to toe in water. 

Locus gave a him a curt nod, then took his place on the blanket beside David. David looked his soaking wet body, then realized that it wasn't raining outside.

"Why're you wet?" David asked quietly. "It's not raining." Locus looked at him, his green eyes full of scrutiny. 

"I know," he answered. "I washed myself in the pond. I felt gross." 

"Oh..." David trailed off, not knowing what else to say. "So...what am I?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" 

"You said I was a prisoner, and then you said I wasn't, so it shouldn't be a surprise that I'm confused."

"Oh," Locus said, nodding his head in understanding. "I see. Well, you proved yourself loyal by helping to save Felix and I. So I guess you could be considered a...partner. One of us."

"Wow," David answered, not at all expecting that reply. "Really?"

"Yes, unless you want to be on your own again..."

"No no no," David instantly intervened. "No, I'd love to be...one of you guys, I guess you could say."

"Great," Locus said, standing up slowly, being careful of his wound. "Wake up Felix. We're moving." David nodded, then turned around to nudge Felix. He was slightly taken aback at the fact that Locus blew off the conversation so easily. It took five hard shoves to get Felix to even acknowledge him.

"Whaa...?" Felix grumbled and moaned as he twisted onto his back, rubbing his eyes and stretching with a groan. After he finished his episode, he sat up, eyes half open with a lopsided grin on his face. "Mornin', Wash." he chuckled as he slowly stood up. "Heading out so soon?" he asked David.

"Yes," Locus answered for David while simultaneously packing up their belongings. "We need to travel by day so we can see, and have a new position by nightfall. This one-" Locus was cut off by a guttural groan coming from the entrance of the cave. Every eye looked toward the entrance, seeing none other than a zombie. It took one step forward, then another, then another, each one accompanied by a disgusting noise rising from it's throat. David stumbled back into Felix, who caught him by the shoulders, holding him in one place.

"Don't move," Felix whispered, his breath tickling David's ear. Locus swiftly pulled a combat knife out from one of the bags, and slowly moved towards the creature. It stumbled forward, lunging at Locus. Locus swiftly veered off to the left, quickly turned around then lunged at the zombie, plunging the knife deep into the back of the zombie's head. He then pulled it out, the zombie falling lifeless to the cave ground. He cleaned the bloody knife off on his shirt, eyes not moving from the corpse.

"This is why we're leaving," he said as he made his way back over to the bags, picking all three up. "We're going now."

David and Felix followed Locus out of the cave and towards the horses, who were patiently waiting for them. Locus tied two bags to Jack and one onto the other horse. He then untied them both, preparing to leave quickly

"What's his name?" David asked, tilting his head towards the other horse after he had boarded Jack.

"Her name," Locus corrected as Felix jumped on. "Is Lilac." he then turned to look up at Felix, who was extending a hand down to Locus. Locus grabbed it, settling in behind Felix. They then pulled away from the trees, leaving behind their temporary home. 

"Which way?" David questioned.

"North," Locus answered. David fell in behind the other two, more than grateful to let them lead the way.

 

They rode in silence for what seemed like forever to David, although he was assuming it had only been a few hours. He had just been sitting there, staring at the trees that had all begun to look the same, and the dirt that never changed, at the back of the swaying heads of Locus and Felix. He couldn't take the silence anymore, so he just had to break it. 

"Where are we?" he questioned. There was a moment of silence before a quiet reply from Locus.

"California."

"California?" David parroted.

"Yes, in the Sierra Nevada Mountains."

"But...I was in Phoenix! I was crawling through Phoenix when you guys found me!" David was in utter shock over how far they had traveled.

"You were out for a long time," Felix chimed in. 

"...How long, exactly?"

"...two days."

"That's not long at all," David said, confused. "How did you guys get so far?"

"We caught one of the last running trains," Locus answered. "It was a boxcar train. We jumped as soon as we hit the National Park."

"Oh, okay. So...where exactly are we headed?"

"San Francisco," Felix answered. "There's a ship leaving to Japan in a month. To a desolate island north of the mainland. It's the new safe haven for the world...or so rumor has it...but we're taking the chance." David didn't respond, and let the rest of the ride continue in silence.

The group of three eventually came across something that wasn't a tree, a bush, or dirt. It was a metal gate containing a sign with the words "No Trespassing" written in bold white on a red background. The gate looked old, covered in rusty spots, moss and fungi. Felix slipped off of Lilac and pushed the gate opened. It opened slowly, creaking loudly as it went, the sound bouncing off the trees. Felix quietly cursed and jumped back aboard his horse.

"Let's find out where the leads before something else finds us first," he said as he kicked Lilac to life. Behind the gate was a long, overgrown pathway leading up a steady incline of a hill, shadows cast across every angle. David followed closely behind, following his new found friends into the darkness.


End file.
